Countless love stories throughout the ages hinge on the idea of love at first sight. Immediate, unwavering infatuation the moment eyes meet. Two people finding each other across a crowded, glittering ballroom or perhaps bumping into each other accidentally. But what if your true love is hidden behind a disguise? And flees before you have a chance to learn their name?

Such is the challenge facing Benedict Bridgerton (Luke Thompson) in the most recent season of Bridgerton. The first episode of season four centres around a truly spectacular masquerade ball at Bridgerton House and sets up a re-imagining of the Cinderella story, with Regency flare.

Sparkling in silver from head to toe, servant Sophie Baek (Yerin Ha) manages to sneak into the lavish elite entertainment unnoticed. It is there she finds herself in the company of Benedict, one of the most sought-after bachelors in London and a notorious rake. Sparks fly as their gazes lock and the world fades away into a night of enchantment until the resounding chimes of the midnight hour cause Sophie to flee, leaving Benedict with no more than a fast farewell and sole silver glove.

Even without the concealment of a mask, Prince Charming had a hard enough time finding Cinderella – so what chance would mere mortals have had at finding missed connections, let alone true love at the masquerade?

In the case of real Regency woman Elizabeth Chudleigh, it was more like lust at first sight. Chudleigh, whose clandestine marriage was falling apart before her eyes, was an ageing maid of honour in the court of the Princess of Wales. One whisper of her despair, about her marriage or her age, would endanger her post in court, for, as attendants........

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